• Blog Images: How to Find and Use Them Properly

  By Tracy DiMarino | Posted Feb 17, 2010 | 7 Comment(s) | Filed in: Content Marketing, Internet Marketing

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  Images add value to blog posts by making them more visually appealing and interesting, helping readers conceptualize what you’re discussing, and providing searchers another way to find your Website (particularly if they are searching within the Images tab on Google, Yahoo or Bing).
  
  We live in a collaborative online environment; however, finding the perfect image is a little bit more complicated than a quick Google search, and copy and paste.
  
  Below are tips and resources to help you find that killer image for your blog post, without violating copyright laws.

  Free Photos Using Creative Commons

  Creative Commons is a non-profit organization that lets creators grant copyright permissions to their creative work. Using Creative Commons’ free copyright licenses, authors and artists are able to specify how the public can share, use, repurpose and/or remix their work, as well as assign attribution requirements.
  
  For example, some licenses allow only noncommercial use, while others restrict the public from modifying or remixing the creative piece. (See a full breakdown of Creative Commons’ licenses.)
  
  By 2008, an estimated 130 million Creative Commons licenses had been issued. By searching this database, organizations can find free creative materials that they can legally reuse, as long as proper attribution guidelines are followed.

  Searching for Images

  The following sites enable you to search for Creative Commons’ material:

  Creative Commons Search

  Creative Commons Search provides you with eight options to search for creative items: Google (Web), Google (Image), Yahoo (Web), Flickr (Image), Blip.TV (Video), jamendo (Music), WikiMedia Commons (Media) and SpinXpress (Media).
  
  This search feature is a great time-saver, as you can type in one search term in the bar and then search all eight sites at once, making for easy and fast searches of multiple sites for specific terms.
  

  Flickr Creative Commons

  Use Flickr Creative Commons to search for publicly available images by following these steps: Type a query into the search bar and hit “Search;" Click on “Advanced Search;” Select “Only search within Creative Commons material” at the bottom of the screen, as well as “Find content to use commercially” and/or “Find content to modify, adapt, or build upon,” if applicable.

  Google Image Search

  Google’s Image Search allows you to search for images within Creative Commons by using its advanced search feature. Once on this page, use the Usage Rights drop-down menu to select one of the following (depending on your needs): labeled for reuse, labeled for commercial reuse, labeled for reuse with modification or labeled for commercial reuse with modification.

  Image Attribution

  Once an image is found, be sure to review its attribution requirements. Creative Commons Copyrights will have a copyright icon and a link along the right side of the image.
  
  The link will then take you to a Web page that says how that creative can be used and under what conditions (i.e. not for commercial use, can’t be remixed).  For example, check out the usage page for the image in this blog post.
  
  The image will likely require attribution. To do this, include a photo credit that links to the creator’s page or Website (see the bottom of this post for an example), and then link the photo itself to the creator’s page or Website.

  Purchasing Photos

  If you can’t find the perfect image through Creative Commons, or you're looking for a hassle-free solution, consider purchasing royalty-free images. One affordable way to do this is through iStockPhotos. Images suitable for blog posts can cost as little as $0.95-$1.90 each.
  
  Note: If purchasing from iStockPhotos, the extra small photos are typically ideal for blog post images.

  Spice Up Your Blog Posts with Images

  Using the tips above, you can use other people's images to enhance the visual appeal of your blog posts without worrying about copyright infringement. Just, be sure to only use pictures approved for reuse and to provide proper attribution. When in doubt, ask the owner of the image.

  Or, for you adventurous souls out there, there's always the option of taking your own photos.

  Tracy DiMarino is an associate consultant at PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. Follow Tracy on Twitter @TracyDiMarino.
  

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  Photo Credit: AllyAubry
  
  

• What Your Blog May Be Missing

  By Laurel Miltner | Posted Jan 29, 2010 | 2 Comment(s) | Filed in: Content Marketing, Management, Social Media

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  Keeping your company blog regularly updated with quality, buyer persona-driven content can be a major differentiator between a successful and unsuccessful blog.

  But with busy schedules and already-long hours, how can you ensure that the additional responsibility of blogging is kept up with? Certainly, one option is to have multiple contributing bloggers. However, this also comes with a downside: watered-down responsibility. With multiple authors, each individual blogger can more easily become complacent, and expect others to take more responsibility for regularly writing and publishing new posts.

  So how can you combat this apathy? By appointing a Blog Editor.

  

  What is a Blog Editor?

  Much like the editor of a traditional media outlet, a blog editor is simply the person in charge of a blog’s content. It is his or her job to ensure that blog articles are posted on a regular basis, consistent with company messaging, and that all authors are pulling their weight with regular contributions.

  Your blog editor may or may not be a contributing blogger, but must have a strong understanding of your blog’s objectives, audience and focus. He or she should be organized, authoritative, and respected by all blog contributors and willing to step in when needed to keep the blog running smoothly.

  Editor’s Responsibilities

  • Keep a blog editorial calendar, with planned (and approved) blog post topics for each author, along with deadlines and publishing dates. 

  • Remind bloggers when their deadline is coming up.

  • If for any reason someone is unable to complete a post on time, find another blogger to fill in or swap dates.

  • Proof all blog posts prior to publishing.

  • Make sure that overall brand messaging remains consistent, ensure that no company or customer information is being shared without approval, check for grammatical errors and keyword integration, and suggest categories and tags for optimization and consistency.

  • Remember that most readers will scan a post first, so it should be laid out with paragraphs, subheadings, and bulleted or numbered lists when possible.

  • Provide a final edit after a blog post has been uploaded and saved as a draft before publishing. Check for errors one last time, and ensure that the overall formatting looks nice, without any strange text wrapping, breaks or cutoff images.

  • When a new post is published, promote it on company social networks, and encourage the blog author to do the same on their personal (professional) accounts. 

  • Keep a log of when posts are published, so that you can start to tie spikes in traffic or leads to blog activity.

  • Subscribe to your blog by both RSS and email. Make sure that feeds work properly and consistently.

  • Review blog comments, and ensure that the author responds when appropriate.

  • Help to identify opportunities outside your own blog. For example, encourage your blog authors to post comments on great articles on others’ blog posts in their area of expertise. Reach out to other industry bloggers who might make a good guest blogger on your own.

  • Keep track of the blog’s overall performance through analytics and social chatter. Let your bloggers know what kind of content is most popular and resonates best with target audiences in different ways. (For example: what kind of content is most popular on Twitter, generates the most comments, gets “liked” on Facebook, gets Stumbled or bookmarked, generates quality traffic that converts to leads, etc.)

  • Acknowledge and reward bloggers when they reach milestones. (Such as their first comment or Stumble, a major influx in traffic, a new customer that recognizes a specific blog post as their decision-maker, etc.)

  • Adjust future topics and blog content based on what your readers want to see.

  Do you have an editor for your company blog?

  How does that person keep content flowing, and keep everyone excited about the blog’s performance?

   

  Laurel Miltner is a consultant at PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm (where she also happens to be the blog editor). Follow Laurel on Twitter @laurelmackenzie.
  
  

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  Photo credit: Wikipedia

• SEO's Magic Bullet

  By Keith Moehring | Posted Jan 27, 2010 | 2 Comment(s) | Filed in: Content Marketing, Search Marketing, Social Media

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  The concept of a Magic Bullet is an intriguing one — a magical solution to solve a vexing problem without the fear of any side effects. This is especially true in search engine optimization, where there is so much money to be made by ranking at the top of a Google search result page for a key term.

  Well, what if I told you...

  ... Search Engine Optimization may just have a “Magic Bullet,"

  

   And it is BLOGGING.

  Half of you just stopped reading. You were ready to hear something new and exciting, and instead were given the same ole same old. Allow me to explain.

  Several months ago, SEOmoz.org released their Search Engine 2009 Ranking Factors. (For those who don’t subscribe to this blog, you’re missing out on some of the most advanced and useful thinking on the topic.)

  The 2009 Ranking Factors rate the importance of search engine ranking factors based on the opinions of 72 SEO experts. Below I’ve detailed how a blog can impact the factors ranked as “very high importance” or “high importance.”

  (It is important to note that while blogging can have a big impact on the factors below and growing your business, to have the greatest success, it should be one part of a comprehensive marketing strategy that includes search marketing, social media, content publishing, and PR. Learn more here.

  On-Page (Keyword-Specific) Ranking Factors:

  Keyword Use Anywhere in the Title Tag (Very High Importance)

  Blogging makes it simple to continuously generate new Web pages, all with keyword-rich Title Tags. In most blogging platforms, your Title Tag is taken from your headline, and if you follow SEO best practices, you are already integrating keywords here anyway.

  Keyword Use as the First Word(s) of the Title Tag (High Importance)

  This again falls in-line with writing effective headlines. By positioning your keywords near the beginning, you can easily satisfy this factor. Word of caution however, don’t get to focused on search engines when writing headlines. First and foremost, headlines should be written to catch the attention of your readers. Always be thinking user-friendly first, optimization second. Search engines are smart enough to understand what you’re optimizing around.

  Keyword Use in the Root Domain Name (High Importance)

  If your company is looking to boost its site's search engine rankings through blogging, don’t worry about this factor. For a blog to provide the maximum SEO value it must be attached to your site as a subdirectory or subdomain (i.e. www.CompanyName.com/blog or blog.CompanyName.com). The root domain name should ALWAYS be your main site.

  On-Page (Non-Keyword) Ranking Factors

  Existence of Substantive, Unique Content on the Page (High Importance)

  Blogs give you a medium to consistently publish new, original content that addresses specific subject matters. By keeping in mind your buyer personas and objectives, there is no limit to how much keyword-rich, unique content you can create.

  Recency (freshness) of Page Content (Moderate Importance)

  As Russ Jones commented in the SEOmoz post, “If Google only ranked the ‘tried and true,’ their results would be old and outdated.” A blog gives you the ability to quickly publish timely content. The more often search engines find new content, the more frequently they’ll return to your site. Every new blog post you create is another page for Google, and other search engines, to index.

  Page-Specific Link Popularity Ranking Factors
  

  Keyword-Focused Anchor Text from External Links (Very High Importance)

  At first look, it may appear that you have no influence over what anchor text people use in their links. Not exactly true. Typically, when creating links, others will use the title/headline of your post — another reason to focus on getting keywords in your headlines. Something else to keep in mind — a number of bloggers understand the value of keywords in link anchor text and may automatically integrate words you use, or even consider changing their anchor text if you ask nicely.

  External Link Popularity (quantity/quality of external links) (Very High Importance)

  The beauty of quality, useful blog content is that if you share it using the right social-media channels (i.e. Twitter, LinkedIn, Digg, StumbleUpon, etc.), your network will spread it for you. As more people see your content, the chances of generating links increase exponentially. Always be trying to grow your reach through social media in tandem with writing good, useful blog content.

  Diversity of Link Sources (many root domains) (Very High Importance)

  This goes hand-in-hand with External Link Popularity (above). The greater your social media reach, the broader your audience of potential linkers. Consider pushing the boundaries of your niche and expanding how you can impact other topics or industries through disruptive innovation. The more you can do this, the more diverse your audience will become.

  Page-Specific TrustRank (whether the individual page has earned links from trusted sources) (High Importance)

  The Internet is full of online resources created by thought leaders expanding their industry’s thinking on a specific topic. Support your posts by citing these resources with links from within your content. If the source is using analytics, they will see any traffic coming from your post to theirs, consequently making them aware of you. If your post supports their thinking, and they find value in your content, the chance of them linking to you increases.

  Topic-Specificity/Focus on External Links Sources (whether external links to this page come from topically relevant pages/sites.) (High Importance)

  Blogging gives you the opportunity to become a thought leader. Your blog can amplify your reach to thousands of people who are interested in learning about your subject matter, many of whom are probably writing about similar topics on their own blogs. The more of a resource you are, the more your links you can expect.

  Keyword-Focused Anchor Text from Internal Links (High Importance)

  Integrate your blog posts throughout your site, whether it’s through a feed on your homepage, links on related product or service pages, links from other blog posts, or a list of posts in a media room. If you’re using a feed, your keyword-rich headlines should do the trick. If you’re linking from within page content you have complete control over what words you use as anchor text. Use your priority keywords, and consider using synonyms on different pages to expand the terms for which the search engines index your post.

  View SEOmoz’s full list of search ranking factors. See the 72 SEO experts who collaborated on this project.

  Keith Moehring is a consultant at PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. Follow Keith on Twitter @keithmoehring.

  Image credit - http://www.clker.com/clipart-25666.html

• Blogging For Business Video: Inbound Marketing Summit - Sept. 8, 2008

  By Paul | Posted Oct 21, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in:

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  I had the privildge to present at the 2008 Inbound Marketing Summit on Sept. 8, which drew more than 300 attendees, 1,300 live stream viewers, 10,000 Website visitors, and 100,000 social media connections. The inaugural event brought together experts in the field of inbound marketing to share the latest strategies, tools, and best practices to utilize inbound marketing methods to grow your business. 

  Below is the session abstract and video (including the always nerve-racking technical glitch to start).

  Blogging for Business: Improve Your Search Engine Rank & Engage with Your Customers

  Are you looking to grow smarter and faster than your competitors, connect with audiences online, boost search engine rankings and position yourself as a thought leader? You can do it all with highly relevant, keyword-centric blogs. In this session, you will get an inside look at the blogosphere, including corporate blogging trends and statistics, learn how to establish or strengthen your blogging strategy, and discuss best practices for businesses of all sizes.

  
  
  Also, be sure to check out 8 Blogging for Business Tools.
  
  
  
• 8 Blogging for Business Tools

  By Paul | Posted Oct 21, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Internet Marketing, Social Media

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  Blogging gives businesses an incredibly effective and measurable vehicle to connect with consumers and build relationships online, while generating Website traffic, inbound links and leads.
  
  And while there are more than 112,000,000 blogs published today, the vast majority of businesses have yet to harness the power of corporate blogging.
  
  So let’s take an introductory look at the blogging tools you need to effectively monitor, participate and publish.

  1) Blog Search Sites

  Blog search sites, such as Technorati and Google Blog Search, give you the ability to discover blogs in your industry, and find out what other influentials are blogging about.
  
  Simply enter keywords for your industry and/or expertise (e.g. public relations), and see who’s out there and what they’re saying.

   

  

   

  

  2) Really Simple Syndication (RSS) Feeds

  According to Forrester[1], only 8% of consumers use RSS feeds, so if you don’t know what they are or how to use them, then you’re not alone.
  
  RSS feeds are sort of like wire services for Websites with frequently updated content. The feeds are transmitted from a host site (e.g. a blog, chat group, news site), and received by your RSS feed reader (see #3 for description), giving you the ability to consume enormous amounts of information from dozens, or even hundreds of sources, without having to spend hours surfing the Web, watching TV and reading newspapers.
  

  

   

  3) RSS Feed Readers

  RSS feed readers make it incredibly simple and efficient to monitor content updates from across the Web. All you have to do is create a free account on one of the leading readers — Netvibes, Google Reader, NewsGator — and start subscribing to RSS feeds from your favorite sites.
  
  Check out a demo Netvibes site we’ve created featuring blogs from presenters at the 2008 Inbound Marketing Summit:
  

  www.netvibes.com/pr2020

   

  

   

  4) Google News Alerts

  Google News Alerts is a free tool that makes it possible to monitor an unlimited number of keywords and phrases. It takes 10 seconds or less to set up an alert, and then Google delivers updates right to your email inbox.
  
  You should consider monitoring your company name with variations (e.g. PR 20/20, pr2020, PR 2020), key executives, priority keywords, competitors, events and products/services.
  

  

   

  5) Social Bookmarking

  Social bookmarking sites such as Digg, StumbleUpon, Delicious and Reddit, give you the ability to find and share great content.
  
  You’ll be amazed at the volume of Website traffic that can be generated when you create great content on your blog, and it gets shared to one of these popular sites.
  
  Get started by creating a profile on one of these sites, then begin exploring.
  

  Sample StumbleUpon Profile
  

   

  

   

  6) Blogging Platforms

  When you decide it’s time to join the blogosphere as a publisher, selecting your blogging platform is one of the most important decisions you’ll make, so do your homework.
  
  Wordpress, Typepad and Hubspot offer some of the more robust blog publishing tools, so that’s a good place to start looking. Here are a few features you’ll want to be sure are included in the platform you choose:

  • Simple RSS and email subscription
  • Social media integration
  • Technical & community support
  • Search by categories
  • Tagging and search by tags
  • Pinging services
  • Multiple authors
  • Custom URL with your own domain

  7) Search Engine Optimization

  Sharing great content and insight with your readers is rewarding on its own, but if you’re serious about building your business too, you’ll want to optimize your blog for search engines.
  
  At minimum, check out Google’s Keyword Tool to see what keywords people are searching for, and then try to tailor some of your posts to the wants and needs of your audiences.
  
  For example, based on our inbound marketing software (we use Hubspot) keyword analysis, I know that a good amount of people are looking for information on “public relations trends,” so we regularly publish content related to those keywords.

  8) Microblogging Platforms

  Microblogging platforms like Twitter are exactly what they sound like: tiny blogging tools.  Another form of social networking, Twitter works like so: You set up a profile, find people you know (or find interesting) and follow them. You then receive each of your new friends’ 140-character-or-less updates, and anyone that follows you gets yours.
   
  Since people who follow you are most likely interested in what you have to say, you can “tweet,” or send an update, when you post a new blog article.  Just another way to promote your content and drive relevant traffic from people who are clearly active in social media.
  
  
  Stay tuned for more Blogging for Business posts, and check out our presentation at the 2008 Inbound Marketing Summit.
  
  
  
  [1] US: Forrester's North American Social Technographics Online Survey, Q2 2007, 10,010 respondents.

• Selling to the Future (Part 4 of 5): Blogging in business

  By Christina | Posted Sep 5, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Internet Marketing

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  (Part 4 of a 5-part blog series on Selling to the Future)  

  Teenagers and young professionals of Generation Y are the true ambassadors of the blogosphere.  Not only are blogs vital for a strong inbound marketing campaign - increasing your search engine visibility through inbound links to your Websites – but also a great way to share content and create discussions.
  
  A 2007 report, Teens and Social Media, highlights creative content sharing as a growing trend.  The report is based on a national phone survey of 935 youth ages 12-17 conducted in November 2006.

  • Content creation by teenagers continues to grow, with 64 percent of online teenagers ages 12 to 17 engaging in at least one type of content creation, up from 57 percent of online teens in 2004
  • 39 percent of online teens share their own artistic creations online such as artwork, photos stories or videos.
  • 33 percent of online teens create or work on Web pages or blogs for others, including friends, groups they belong to or school assignments.
  • 28 percent of online teens have created their own blog, up from 19 percent in 2004 - almost completely driven by the popularity of blogging among girls.
  • 27 percent of online teens maintain their own webpage.

  Making Blogs Work For You
  Blogs thrive on two-way communication – publishing interesting content, and communicating directly through comments, linkbacks, and social bookmarking through StumbleUpon, digg and more.
  
  In a Seth Godin blog post titled “The wealthy gardener,” he states:
  
  “The best bloggers make money, but mostly as a side effect, not as a direct result of setting out to use a blog to make a profit…If it makes you happy (and your readers happy) it's a great place to start. Step by step you get better at it, and then you discover the ancillary benefits. But the benefits kick in best when you don't set out to achieve them...”
  
  A great place to start is to search where your target markets are hanging out in the blogosphere by doing a blog search on Technorati or Google Blogs.  This will help you get a feel for what’s already being said and where you can fit in.  
  
  In addition to using blogs to connect with customers, corporations are also seeing the benefits of internal blogs as employee communication tools.  
  
  How organizations are using blogs in business

  • Establish professionals as experts, thought leaders and innovators.
  • Educate employees, customers, prospects and the media.
  • Manage crisis situations.
  • Optimize Websites for improved search engine rankings.
  • Publish company news, information.

  Not sure if blogging is right for your business?
  
  Check out the Corporate Blog Creative Brief posted on the PR 20/20 Blog, or contact a PR 20/20 Internet marketing consultant today.
  
  With 1.4 blogs created each second, and 22 of the top 100 Websites being blogs, maybe it’s time your business thought about blogging.

   

  Part 1 - Connect to convert
  

  Part 2 - Learn your XYZs

  Part 3 - Facebook is life for college students and beyond
  

  Part 4 - Blogging in business

  Part 5 - Don't call us, we'll text u (coming soon)

   

• Corporate Blog Creative Brief

  By Paul | Posted Sep 5, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Business, Marketing, Public Relations, Social Media

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  Thinking about launching a corporate blog? Here are some basics we've compiled at PR 20/20 to help clients establish a blog strategy before taking the leap:
  
  1. Audiences: Whom do you plan to reach and influence with your blog?

  • Community Leaders
  • Customers
  • Employees
  • Mainstream Media (print, broadcast)
  • Prospects
  • Social Media (bloggers, forum participants, etc.)
  • Suppliers/Vendors
  • Other

  2. Objectives: What do you intend to achieve with your blog?

  • Augment Web site traffic.
  • Boost brand awareness and visibility.
  • Build inbound links.
  • Change, enhance or revitalize brand image.
  • Educate and inform audiences.
  • Enhance/establish positioning as an innovator and industry leader.
  • Generate leads.
  • Other

  3. Content Outline: What relevant, timely topics do you plan to publish?

  • Company news
  • Industry trends
  • White papers
  • Case Histories/Success Stories
  • Tools & resources
  • Other

  4. Frequency: How often do you plan to post?

  • Daily
  • Weekly
  • Monthly
  • Other

  5. Comment Policy: Will the corporation allow, block and/or screen comments?

  6. Controversial Issues: What is the policy for addressing controversial issues?

  7. Links: What sites, blogs and forums will the corporate blog link to?

  8. Promotion: How will the blog be promoted?
  
  For additional insight on corporate blogs, check out Debbie Weil's blog. Debbie is author of The Corporate Blogging Book.

   

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